With a sizzling quarterfinal round in which it went 6-1, Penn State leads the team race with 133.0 points while Iowa is second with 106.0. Nebraska sits in third place with 98.5. The Nittany Lions will have six wrestlers in the championship finals tomorrow, which air live on the Big Ten Network and are assured of at least eight NCAA qualifiers. Tomorrow's session begins at 1 p.m. Eastern with the finals set for 4 p.m. Eastern.
Senior Nico Megaludis (Murrysville, Pa.), ranked No. 4 at 125, met No. 2 Thomas Gilman of Iowa in the first of Penn State's seven semifinals. The duo battled evenly through three periods, moving to sudden victory tied 1-1. After a scoreless SV period, Megaludis escaped quickly in his tie-breaker period. He controlled Gilman in the next :30 period for just over ten seconds before the Hawkeye escaped on the edge of the mat. But Megaludis moved in quickly after the escape and notched a takedown with just :10 on the clock and posted a 4-3 (TB) win. The win earned Megaludis a trip to the title bout tomorrow as Penn State's first finalist.
Junior Jimmy Gulibon (Latrobe, Pa.), ranked No. 21 at 141, met No. 20 Javier Gasca of Michigan State in the semifinals. Gulibon came back from an early 5-2 deficit with a furious third period to post a 6-5 win and advance to the Big Ten championship match. Gulibon used an escape to cut into the lead and then notched a quick takedown to tie the bout. Gulibon then rode Gasca out and his 1:33 in riding time proved the decisive point.
Sophomore Zain Retherford (Benton, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 149, took on No. 5 Alex Pantaleo of Michigan in the semifinals. Retherford continued his dominating run, picking up his second first-period pin of the tournament with a fall at the 2:45 mark over Pantaleo. Retherford took the Wolverine down early in the first then controlled the action from the top, steadily working the fifth-ranked Pantaleo to his back and getting the pin to move into the championship finals.
Red-shirt freshman Jason Nolf (Yatesboro, Pa.), ranked No. 1 at 157, tangled with No. 15 Edwin Cooper of Iowa in the semifinals. Nolf opened up a 10-2 lead after one period with three takedowns and a four-point turn. Nolf added three more takedowns and a final four-point tilt to post the lopsided win and move into the championship finals.
Red-shirt freshman Bo Nickal (Allen, Texas), ranked No. 1 at 174, took on No. 14 Myles Martin of Ohio State in the semifinals. Nickal made short work of the Buckeye grappler in a furious first period. The Lion freshman took Martin down twice and, after the second takedown, wrapped up a cradle in front of the Ohio State bench and pinned Martin at the 2:28 mark in the first period. The victory sends Nickal into the championship finals.
Sophomore Matt McCutcheon (Apollo, Pa.), ranked No. 11 at 184, met No. 12 Sammy Brooks of Iowa in the semifinals. Brooks came out fast, using a late takedown to lead 3-0 after one period. The Hawkeye added a takedown in each of the following periods and posted the strong 6-1 win over McCutcheon. The loss sends McCutcheon into tomorrow's consolation semifinals.
Senior Morgan McIntosh (Santa Ana, Calif.), ranked No. 1 at 197, took on No. 9 Aaron Studebaker of Nebraska in the semifinals. McIntosh bulled his way through the tough Cornhusker grappler, notching a first period takedown and two near fall points in the second period to open up a 4-2 lead. The Lion senior picked up an escape, another takedown and 1:12 in riding time in the third period and posted a strong 8-2 decision (McIntosh downed Studebaker 2-1 (TB) during the regular season. The win moves McIntosh into the championship finals.
Senior Jordan Conaway (Abbottstown, Pa.), ranked No. 5 at 133, took on Indiana's Alonzo Shepherd in the second round of consolation action. Conaway rolled through four third period takedowns to post an important 11-3 major decision, punching his ticket to NCAAs, and picked up another bonus point for the Nittany Lions. He then took on No. 11 Johnni DiJulius of Ohio State in the next conso round. After falling behind 2-1 in the first period, the Lion senior used a reversal and two back points to break away from the Buckeye and post an 8-2 win, moving into the consolation semifinals.
Junior Geno Morelli (DuBois, Pa.) met Indiana's Bryce Martin in the second round of consolations. Morelli burst out to a 4-0 lead early in the first period and never looked back on his way to a 9-3 decision over Martin. The victory moved him into the third round of consolations, with a trip to NCAAs on the line, to face No. 9 Austin Wilson of Nebraska. Wilson caught Morelli quickly with a throw and picked up a pin at the 0:37 mark. Morelli's loss moves him to the seventh place match. A seventh-place finish would increase Morelli's case for a possible at-large bid (announced on Wednesday).
Red-shirt freshman Nick Nevills (Clovis, Calif.) battled No. 24 Brooks Black of Illinois in the second round of consolations. Black used takedowns in the first and third periods to post a 5-3 win and end Nevills' tournament. Nevills went 1-2 in his first Big Ten Championship and posted a 6-3 record after returning from an injury in mid-February. He did not earn an automatic bid to NCAAs.
Penn State knows it has eight NCAA qualifiers with Morelli still alive for seventh place and a potential at-large bid (announced on Wednesday). The Nittany Lions went 9-3 in session two and an outstanding 23-6 overall on day one of the championship. Penn State picked up 28 bonus points on six pins, two tech falls and seven majors.
The championship concludes on Sunday with a 1 p.m. session (Eastern) with consolation action. The Big Ten finals begin at 4 p.m. Eastern and air live on the Big Ten Network.
Penn State Fans are encouraged to follow Penn State wrestling via twitter at @pennstateWREST, on Penn State Wrestling's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewrestling and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/pennstatewrest. The 2015-16 Penn State wrestling season is presented by The Family Clothesline. This is PENN STATE. WRESTLING lives here.
Team Standings:
1: PENN STATE – 133.0
2: Iowa – 106.0
3: Ohio State – 100.0
4: Nebraska – 98.5
5: Rutgers – 90.5
6: Illinois – 78.5
7: Michigan – 70.0
8: Wisconsin – 53.0
9: Minnesota – 38.0
10: Purdue – 30.0
11: Indiana – 26.0
12: Michigan State – 10.5
13: Northwestern – 8.0
14: Maryland – 7.5
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